Hand-brake for railway-cars



J. F. OCONNOR.

HAND BRAKE FOR RAILWAY CARS. APPLICATION FILED SEPT.30, 1918. RENEWED AUG. 30, |920.

1,356,084. Patented oct. 19,1920.

my! f5 A TTORN UNITED STATES PATENT 4OFFICE.

JOHN' F. OCONNOR, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGN'OR TO WILLIAM H. MINER, 0F

CRAZY, NEW YORK.

Specification of Jtetters Patent. Patented Oct. 19,1920.

Application filed September 30, 1918, SerialvNo. 256,173. RenewedAugust 30, 1920. Serial No.-407,062.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN F. OCoNNon, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the countyof Cook and @tate of Illinois, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Handrakes for Railway-Cars, of which the following is a full, clear," concise, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification.

This invention relates to improvements in hand brakes for railway cars.

The object of the invention is to provide an exceedingly simple and relatively ineX- pensive geared hand brake for railway cars wherein is employed a vertical staff.

In the drawing forming a part of this specification. Figure 1 is an end view of a portion of a gondola car showing my improvements applied thereto, part of the car being broken away. Fig. 2 is an enlarged, vertical. sectional view taken substantially on the line 2 2 of Fig. 3 and illustrates the arrangement of the winding spool and gearing. Fig. 3 is a horizontal, sectional view taken substantially on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

In said drawing, 10 denotes the end wall of a gondola car, 11 a platform for the brakeman, 12 an upper bearing bracket for the vertical brake staff 13, and 14 a de pending lower bearing bracket secured preferably to the underside of the bottom of the car body. The staff 13 is provided. at its fupper end, with the usual form of hand wheel 15, and, adjacent the platform 11, is provided with a ratchet wheel 16 and a footcontrolled pawl 17.

At its lower end, the staff 13 has mounted thereon a chain-winding spool 18. The spool 18 is formed with a preferably integral gear 19 at its lower end, the entire spool and gear being freely rotatable on the staff 13. The staff 13, at its extreme lowest end, is formed with a portion 20 of reduced size rotatably mounted in the bearingI bracket 14:, and intermediate the reduced section 20 and the main portion of the staff, the staff is provided with a squared section, as indicated at 21. Mounted on the squared section 21 of the staff is another smaller gear 22, which will, of course, be rotatable in unison with the staff. At one side of the staif is provided a stud shaft 23 preferably in the form of a headed pin, the s ame being supported in suitable bearings 1n thebracket 14 and a plate 24 riveted to the bracket, as indicated in Figs. 1 and 2. Rotatably mounted on the stud shaft 23 are two gears of different diameters, 25 and 26, preferably formed integrally but in any event adapted to rotate in unison. The gear 26 is made larger than the gear 25 and the gear 26 meshes with the gear 22, whereas the gear 25 meshes with the gear 19 of the spool 18. Suitable cotters 27-27 are passed through the lower ends of the staff and the stud shaft to prevent accidental disengagement.

As clearly indicated in Fig. 1, the spool 18 and associatedgears are disposedbelow the level of the bottomof the car so that the brake chain (one link of which is indicated at $8) will readily wind about the spool when the staff is rotated. By employing the arrangement disclosed, it is evident that I obtain an increased leverage ratio, 'since rotation of the staff 13 will be oommunicated from the lgear 22 to the gear 26 and thence through the gear 25 to the spool 18. In this way, I am enabled to obtain a much more effective braking tension with the usual staff and hand wheel than heretofore, and, at the same time, the number of parts is reduced to a minimum. The arrangement is exceedingly compact and inexpensive, and all the parts are disposed in such manner as to avoid dangerto the operator and clear from injury which might result from the striking of the parts by any stationary projection while the car is moving.

lAlthough I have herein shown and described what I now consider the preferred manner of carrying out my invention, the

.same is merely illustrative, and I contem'- staff, a stud shaft carried by said depending bracket and two gears of different diameters mounted on said stud shaft, said two gears being rotatable in unison, one of said two gears meshing with the rst mentioned gear and the other of said two gears meshing with said gear rotatable in unison with the staff.

2. In a device of the character described, the combination with a 'car body having bearings thereon for a vertical brake staif and including a bracket at the bottom of the car body, of a Vertical brake staff rotatably mounted in said bearings, a spool rotatably mounted on said sta" below the bottom of 15 lever ratio multiplying gearing interposed 20 between said gear rotatable in unison with the staff and the gear rotatable in unison with the spool.

Inwitness that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto subscribed my name this 25 24th day of Sept., 1918.

JOHN F. GCONNOR. 

